By the Numbers

I love "By the Numbers" posts, I don't know why I don't do them more often....

• this is post #853
• I have been home and living more gratefully in London for 30 days - PEI seems like a distant sweet dream
• speaking of that Crofters Lane is up for sale for $10,000 more than what I originally paid for it
• 7 - the number of days til I begin winging it across the big pond!!!
• 6 -the number of flights I'll be on in total
• 144 - the number of kms I'll be walking through the Cotswolds
• +8c - the temperature in London!!
• +19c - the temperature in the Cotswolds right now!
• 5 - the number of times I've turned on the furnace this morning and heard nothing!! sigh....
• 32 - the number of gigs in my new camera memory card = 1,000s of photos!!
• 8:02am - the time I got up today...somehow I slept through my first alarm at 7:00am
• 24 - how old my daughter will be on Sunday!
• 20 - how old our cat is
• 0 - the number of times I've dreamed about school since my "night before the first day of school dream"  :)
• 1 -the number of Council of Canadians meetings I've gone to (first one last night!)
• 2 - the number of times I've exercised in the last week - BOOOOOOOOO!!!
• $350 - the amount of money I've spent this week on trip-related stuff & some groceries

Dear Diary: 

Went to my first meeting of the Council of Canadians last night - they are a politically active group that protest government bills that adversely affect the environment. My concerns relate to global warming and the loss of animal/bird habitats plus I'm going to join Julie in her efforts to rid London of plastic bottles of water.

Tomorrow I'm getting together with my brother, my sister-in-law and some cousins for a mini reunion in Aylmer. And then on Sunday I have a major hike - fast paced and a longer distance than usual. Today I'm thinking about going to the fair. A good old Canadian band "Glass Tiger" is playing. Several acts have been rained out this week but no rain today! 

But first I have to google "furnace won't start" to see if there's anything I can do before calling in the experts. Rats. Well, at least it's not snowing. Grrrrrrrrrr! That also means I'm going to have to clear the clutter out of the furnace room:(

Finished the book Kim gave me by Alistair MacLeod. WOW. Sometimes my brain gets stuck in the past - Kim and I have talked about that as it's a common trait in the family - we are a sentimental soppy bunch (most of us, not all). Anyway the book he gives me is about the MacDonald family who settled on Cape Breton Island back in the 1700's and their lives until the present. Talking about living in the past! My take away from this book is that remembering the past is important, an oral tradition that has been a way of connecting the many generations of a family and I shouldn't feel badly about "what was". "What was" informs the present. 

Many characters have the same name over the generations: Alexander MacDonald - there are about 10 Alexander MacDonalds over the many generations. One "live" Alexander even takes the place of an Alexander who dies. There are many messages in this book which I will go into more here. Kim knows how to pick a book that supports and helps to explain the way I am feeling. I have great brothers. And sisters. Family.

Now off to google :(

Lady of Leisure

 Somehow I don't think "lady of leisure" describes me very well. I'm always up to something. And this past Saturday that "something" was the basement.

I noticed the large TRASH BIN was back and I found out it's going to be there for the month of September as students and families move in and out. Brilliant! I wasn't planning on starting the basement quite yet but can't look a trash bin in the mouth! (Is that how the saying goes??)

About 12 years ago me, myself and I laid laminate flooring down in the basement. You didn't know I was so handy did you? It was a March break project - I cut some instructions out of a magazine, found some half price flooring and literally "got busy"!! The basement is home to our TV/exercise room, a furnace/work room, a laundry room and two storage areas and a reading nook.

I think I did a pretty good job overall. I also did the trim and baseboards and since I didn't know how to mitre the corners I used corner pieces for the baseboard but it looked nice I thought.

 BUT ever since the hot water tank broke down a couple years ago flooding the basement with an inch of water I worried that there might be mould under the laminate and underlay.

 So I've been waiting for the right moment to get started on this lovely project and what with the free bin to throw the flooring in I thought to myself - "THE TIME IS NOW!"

My tool of choice...plus I used a flat head screwdriver and a hammer and my amazing strength!

 The hardest part was finding a place to start. Once one board is removed it all starts to come up.

I had two shag area rugs I decided to toss too - they date back to when Kazi was in Gr. 11 and we had an exchange student from France stay with us for two weeks so they are 6-7 years old. I suppose that's not terribly old but I'm in a "out with the old, in with the new" kind of mood.

I ripped through the underlay thinking I was going to see black mould but all there was was the bare concrete floor. No mould behind the baseboards either. I'm very relieved.  Now could somebody put the laminate back in place please??

 Hah, just kidding, sort of...

You know vacuuming the underlay is a tricky business - the vacuum wanted to suck it all up so I switched to the vacuum brushy attachment and that worked better.

 Isn't the TV/exercise room lovely now? Such a nice floor. I haven't a clue what to put down there - suggestions?

 My old cat likes it better - she doesn't slip around on the underlay as much as she did on the laminate.

 The reading area is done....

and vacuumed.

It took many many trips up and down the basement stairs with arm loads of flooring and baseboards - I pulled Dougie the Dodge right up to my front door and loaded him up, then drove over to the bin and unloaded. A neighbour came over and helped me unload the first and largest load - thank you Clint!

 There's all my crap - it's going to get hauled away for FREE!! 

And Dougie, once again you came through big time! Who needs a man when they have Dougie the Dodge to help!?!  I mean look at him - isn't he lovely? He just sits there waiting patiently and quietly until I need him. The strong and silent type! Of course my back is feeling it and my right wrist is suffering from repetitive strain but those things won't last.

And so, the decision of what to put down for flooring in the basement will be scheduled for AFTER my trip - it's ok for now.

Dear Diary:
HAHAHAHA day off to a great start! Warmer this morning - +17c whereas yesterday morning it was freezing! No sunshine to speak of yet. The neighbour guy with all the dogs was outside laughing maniacally earlier - not sure why...other than he's weird! Yesterday did not go exactly as planned but then my days rarely do. I had it all sorted that I would get details of my trip figured out and then go for a bike ride to loosen up my stiff muscles but it took the whole freakin' day to find and print things like the London TUBE map and my train trip reference numbers for the 3 train trips I booked etc etc etc...not that I'm complaining Diary (yes, I am) but it was a long day sitting in front of the computer. Thanks to my friend Annie for booking another train trip for me as I didn't know which station I'd be leaving from after I visit her. Well, at least I know what an "Oyster" card is now:)

The detail that took the longest to sort out was how to get from the Norwich train station to my B&B which is in a small village a few miles away. I finally found a local bus line that goes "close" to where I'm staying so then I'll either walk the rest of the way (not far) or call a taxi (I found a phone number for one). 

Note to self: next trip will be much simpler - no zigzagging all over the damn place requiring multiple planes, trains, buses, tubes and taxis!!!

Today I am going to read all the pre-trip info that was sent to me by the "walking tour" people and make my final "to do" and "to buy" lists. Everything is pretty much paid for except my meals. Breakfast is included at all of my B&B's and I'm going to see if I can nab a few extra items from breakfast to eat for lunch - worth a shot. Then I only have to pay for dinner. I'm told everything is expensive over there. 

Then, if there is any time left I'll get out for a bike ride, oh, and if it isn't raining! At least I have leftovers for dinner so no planning required there. Last night's dinner of salmon, cauliflower and green onions was superb! Green onions just make everything taste better and mixing them with steamed cauliflower was to die for. But here I still am :) 
Ciao
PS - finished "A Fatal Winter" - only 1 left in the series :(

Dear Diary

Good morning my dears: From time to time I've toyed with keeping a diary, something in which to record daily events from the mundane (the weather) to the ridiculous (my life:) and occasionally get started but always I let it slide. I find it both burdensome and somewhat redundant to keep both a blog AND a diary so I've made a decision.

I'm going to include a "Dear Diary" segment at the end of each post and sometimes it will be instead of a post as I don't usually do a blog post everyday. You're welcome of course to read my diary entries - they may not be very exciting and don't feel obligated to comment on them. It's more a little record-keeping for myself as my memory isn't what it was and sometimes I try to remember what I did on such and such a day and I can't! I've kept diaries in the past (pre-computers!) and I enjoy looking back to see what I was up to in l992. We remember the big events, but the ordinary everyday stuff gets forgotten (and yet I find it so interesting!!)

So here goes....

Dear Diary:
So I'm starting a new routine, or at least trying to (must be honest with Dear Diary!) When I first get up in the morning I'm going to make a coffee and toast (or oatmeal) and spend some time on the computer updating my diary and perhaps writing a blog post. I don't get the newspaper from my neighbour, Alma, until about 8am, (sharing the cost and sharing the newspaper is going well) so I have some time if I get up at my usual 7am.

Yesterday was a good day - went on a hike along the Thames from Adelaide almost to Richmond, behind St. Peter's seminary. We had some difficulties though because parts of the trail were flooded - I heard we got 6 inches of rain thereabouts during Friday's multiple thunderstorms. Michelle, Mike and I went to Timmies after. I had some good conversations with people I hadn't talked to before while hiking - Mark in particular about retirement and choosing the right time to go.

Still haven't received the $$ from the house closing. The lawyer dealing with it is off on holidays until Sept. 12th so perhaps that's why? Doesn't seem right though that I should have to wait while the lawyer cavorts around the island! I'm dragging my feet on the trailer - I'm just not sure at this particular point in time whether to take the plunge or not - I may wait until spring as I wouldn't be able to use the trailer until then anyways and I could possibly get away with making a lower offer. The hot water tank has to be replaced at a cost of $600 so there's that to consider. I'm going to wait til at least after I come back from my trip and then decide if I want to make an offer or wait til spring. I like scheduling my decisions - it takes off the stress:0

Just found out Kim is going to Ireland while I'm in the UK - two siblings overseas at the same time! Too bad we're not on the same plane but he's leaving one day before me.

Am having difficulties with my complexion - at MY age! I find my pores are larger so when I sweat they get clogged. What fun! I rarely wear makeup (YAY!) and try to clean my skin a few times a day but still I get a whitehead or two after a sweaty hike. Thank you menopause! Grrrrr.

The humidity is gone and the weather is perfect right now. Sunny and low 20's (celcius). I think today's exercise will be a bike ride. I'm still looking for a gas station with free air for my bike tires. I refuse to pay $1.00 to add air to my tires!! What's that diary? cheap cheap cheap! 

I am reading two books right now. A real book that Kim gave me by Canadian writer Alistair MacLeod (died this past April) called "No Great Mischief" about the clann Chalum Ruaidh. (Kim has Alistair MacLeod as a teacher when he went to the University of Windsor!) Kim and I have been talking alot about how we sometimes get bogged down and depressed by our memories of the past and that we're too darn sensitive and he gives me a book to read that's all about memories of the MacDonald clan!! narrated by the 'ille bhig ruaidh. It's a weighty book, full of loss but full of strength.  The other book is on my iPad and is a bit more light-hearted called "A Fatal Winter: A Max Tudor Novel" about an Anglican minister in England who formerly an MI5 agent and gets caught up in a murder investigation. The author G.M. Malliet (Death of a Cozy Writer) is one of my favourite british mystery writers and has a quirky sense of humour and this book makes me laugh out loud while reading. (A Pagan Spring - haven't read yet)

And that's life at Crabapple Landing.